


Out of the Murderous Innocence of the Sea

by Thistlerose



Category: Battlestar Galactica (2003)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-09-13
Updated: 2010-09-13
Packaged: 2017-10-11 18:14:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/115430
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Thistlerose/pseuds/Thistlerose
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Agathons, reunited.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Out of the Murderous Innocence of the Sea

They won't let her see Roslin, and it's probably just as well. She'd be tempted to put her fist through the woman's chest, to show her how losing her daughter felt. But that would be self-defeating. Adama would either have her thrown out of the airlock like Leoben and Cavil and sent back to the Cylons, or he'd lock her up forever. Either way, he'd never let her see Hera again.

So Sharon tries not to think about revenge. Instead, she lies in her rack, holding Hera, stroking her fine dark curls, breathing in her soft, powdery scent, tracing the slope of her tiny nose with her fingertip. Sharon had no childhood, never knew any children until Hera, so she has no lullabies for her daughter. Helo has some – random verses he half-remembers about ducklings and lambs – and he teaches them to his girls.

It's almost enough. Not to make up for the pain or the time lost, but to soothe Sharon's harried nerves, to convince her again that she chose right when she chose Helo and Adama over the Cylons.

She won't admit it, not even to Helo, but occasionally she needs convincing.

They have one full day together, all three Agathons. Then Starbuck shows up.

"Excuse me for interrupting the domestic bliss," she says, standing in the doorway with her feet wide apart, hands clasped behind her back, chin raised. "But you're now fifteen minutes late for my debriefing."

Sharon opens her mouth to protest, but Helo cups her shoulders with his hands, quiets her with the gentle pressure of his thumbs, and says, "Come on, Kara. We just got our daughter back."

"Do you see me trying to take her away from you?" Starbuck snaps. "But I bet that's something the Cylons would love to do. So, how about doing your job? That involves getting your asses out of bed and to my debriefing. Preferably before the frakking Cylons find us again."

Whether she senses the tension or is frightened by Starbuck's sharp tone, Hera starts to cry. Sharon picks her up and holds her close.

"You don't need both of us," says Helo.

"Don't tell me what I need."

"You don't know," Sharon accuses bitterly, "what we've been through. If you knew what it was like to have a child, and then to lose her, to have her taken from you…"

Starbuck wouldn't strike someone holding a small child, but she looks as if she'd like to. Her mouth tightens and color jumps in her cheeks. "You're right," she says in a tone that raises the small hairs at the nape of Sharon's neck. "I know shit about loss." She unclasps her hands, shows them her blistered palms. Sharon doesn't know what this gesture is supposed to mean, other than _Don't frak with me._

For what feels like a very long time, the only sound in the room is Hera's whimpering as she twists in Sharon's arms and tugs on fistfuls of her hair.

"Tomorrow," Starbuck says finally and without emotion. "I want both of you tomorrow, and if you're not the first two there, I swear by all the gods…"

Leaving the dire consequences unspoken, she turns and walks away. For a second, Sharon wants to hand Hera to Helo and run after Starbuck because this isn't like her at all. But then Helo's hands move from her shoulders to her hips. He turns her gently and kisses her forehead. Then he bends his neck to kiss Hera, who stops crying and wriggles in the warmth between her parents.

5/8/2008


End file.
